User:Simetrical/Constitutional draft

Preamble

This document exists to define the roles of the bodies that run and govern this site and community. The guiding principle of the site is to be that barring technical or fiscal obstacles, any considered mandate from the appropriate legislative body of contributing members will be implemented by the administrators.

Section 1 - The Executive

The Executive is composed of the Council Officers and Staff Officers who run the Site.

Article 1 - The Council

The Council is the overarching governing body of the site. Any Council Officer can veto any act or decision on TWC. However, this veto is considered provisional until approved by the Council as a whole.

One member of the Council will be The Speaker of the House, who is elected by the Curia, as per according to the procedure in Section 2 Article 2, from among those members ranked as Citizen, and will serve a term of three months.

Every Council Officer must be ratified by the Curia immediately after appointment, by the process in Section 2 Article 2. An appointed Council Officer who fails the ratification vote is returned to his previous position.

Article 2 - Other Staff Officers

Other staff officers will be appointed as is appropriate to handle such tasks as moderation, site content, and server administration. Any staff officer whose rights include the ability to moderate general discussion forums must be a Citizen, and he must be ratified by the Curia according to the procedure of Section 2, Article 2.

Section 2 - The Legislature

The Curia is a place for Citizens to discuss and propose Decisions that affect the governing of the Site and Site Policy, and also to amend this document.

Article 1 - Election Procedure

When the Curia is required to elect an Officer or Rank, or ratify an appoint, the following process is followed.

Ratification Votes

Two weeks after any member has been appointed as a Staff Officer whose rights include the ability to moderate general discussion forums, a one-week ratification poll will be posted. The member is ratified if he or she receives a majority of non-abstaining votes.

Election Votes

When a Curial Election is required, eligible members can apply in a thread created for that purpose, where they must post their reasons for applying. A vote will then be opened for one week, with the winner (or winners, if multiple positions are open) being the one who receives the plurality of non-abstaining votes. In the case of ties, a three-day run-off vote is held between the tied members.

Votes of No Confidence

Citizens may initiate a vote of no confidence in any elected or Council Officer for neglect of duty or abuse of authority by posting their case within the Curia. Frivolous use of this procedure may result in disciplinary proceedings. Elected officers who fail a vote of no confidence lose their rank; for Council Officers the result is not binding. Votes of no confidence follow the same procedure as bills, in Article 2.

Article 2 - Legislative Procedure

Any Citizen may propose a bill for discussion by posting a thread in a designated forum. Bills can take two forms:

• Amendment - A proposal to alter the text of the Constitution. Amendments can alter or remove existing text and add entirely new text.
• Decision - A proposal for the creation of an official Decision of the Curia on a topic relevant to the functioning of TWC. Decisions are not binding on staff, but are to be taken under advisement.

For a bill to be moved to vote, it must be supported by three Citizens other than the proposer and must have been posted for at least three days. When a bill is moved to vote, a poll thread is posted for one week in the appropriate forum. Posts in this thread are limited to notification of having voted. Messages lobbying to vote for or against, including via Signatures and Avatars, are prohibited except in the original debate thread. Bills pass if they receive two-thirds support. If any bill fails a vote, no re-vote on a substantially similar bill will be permitted within twenty-eight days.

Where a Decision requires the Curia to choose between multiple options, two polls are run concurrently. The first poll is a normal decision, while the second poll outlines the options to choose from if the decision passes. Whichever option receives the plurality of non-abstaining votes is implemented, but only if the Decision also passes in the usual manner.

All Amendments and Decisions have immediate effect and no retroactive effect unless specifically stated otherwise.

The Curator can amend the text of the Constitution and any Curial Decision to correct any spelling and grammatical errors.

Article 3 - Consilium de Civitate

The Consilium de Civitate manages the granting and removal of all Curia Ranks.

Membership

The Consilium de Civitate has the following members:

• Twelve elected Citizens, who may discuss and vote on all matters within the Consilium de Civitate Forum
• Council Officers, who may discuss all matters within the Consilium de Civitate Forum, but have no vote.
• The Curator, who may take part in all Consilium de Civitate discussions, and has the deciding vote only in the case of a tie. The Curator has veto powers over any Consilium de Civitate decision.

Elected members of the Consilium de Civitate and the Curator must actively participate in discussions and votes. Council Officers' participation is optional.

Elections

Consilium de Civitate members are elected according to Article 2 of this Section. They must have no Staff warnings at the time of election and must have held their rank for three months. Each elected member has a term of three months, and when their term expires, new elections will be held.

If a member of the Consilium de Civitate resigns during their term, or if during elections fewer than twelve eligible Citizens apply in the candidates thread, the vacant positions may be filled by a volunteering Staff Officer with at least Citizen rank.

Removal from Office

A Consilium de Civitate member may resign from office, or can be removed from office for appropriate reason by a majority vote of the elected councillors.

Article 4 - Council of War

A number of members shall be elected to the Consilium Belli to facilitate and improve relations between the modding community, the Curia, the Wiki Officer and the Council itself. The duties of the Consilium Belli shall also include, but are not limited to, overseeing all projects designed to promote the TW sections of TWC to the modding community and the general membership. Its forum is publicly viewable and accessible by all, but posting and voting rights are restricted to members of the CB.

All members of the Council, the Wiki Officer, and the Modding Registrar have permanent membership on the Consilium. Other members may ask the Council at any time if they wish to join.

Section 3 - Member Ranks and Curial Officers

All members of the Forum can be divided into the following Ranks. Each Rank confers on the holders a specific set of rights and privileges unavailable to other Ranks unless explicitly stated. An individual may hold only one account of the rank Citizen or higher

Article 1 - Ranks

The following ranks and medals are honours given to members based on their merit. Members who refuse or resign their honours may request them back at will if they have not been revoked by ordinary procedures in the meantime.

Peregrinus

The Rank of Peregrinus is conferred automatically with registration to the TWC Forums. It confers posting rights in the General Fora. Any Peregrinus has the right to ask questions and suggest changes in the "Questions and Suggestions" Forum.

Citizens

Contributing members of TWC have the opportunity to become a Citizen of the Forum according to Article 2 below. Once a member becomes a Citizen, they can then choose between three different badges: Artifex, designed for those who are modders; Civitate, designed for those who have contributed to the debating side of the Site, whether in TW or CC; or Citizen, for those who associate with both.

To qualify for Citizen, a member must have at least fifty posts, been a registered member for one month, and have no warnings within the last three months.

All Citizens have the rights associated with Peregrinus, but in addition may post within the Curia, subject to the procedures in Section 2; may post with the Symposium and may patronise other members as per Article 2

Article 2 - Patronisation

Any Citizen holding their rank for three months can patronise a Peregrinus for citizenship subject to the requirements in Article 1 above. The process of patronisation is as follows.

1. The nominee sends the patron a PM explaining his duties and privileges as a Citizen, and his contributions to the community. The patron forwards this paragraph, along with his own explanation of why he nominated the member, to a Consilium de Civitate member.
2. The CdeC member opens a thread in the CdeC Forum and the proposed nominee is discussed and voted upon.
3. If the nominee achieves sixty per cent of the non-abstaining votes after the thread has been open for seven days, he becomes a Citizen.

If a nominee fails his vote, he is not eligible to be considered again for one month. Members of the CdeC must abstain from voting on members they patronise.

Article 3 - Curial Officers

A Curial Officer is a Citizen who has been elected by the Curia to administer a project or institution at TWC. A Curial Officer holds his office for three months from the day they are elected. If an office is vacant, its duties shall be assumed by the Curator, or, failing that, by the Speaker of the House. The Council may dismiss any Officer it feels has neglected his duties or abused his position.

Permanent Officers

The following are permanent Curial Officers:

• The Curator - responsible for the day to day administration of the Curia, including but not limited to any tasks outlined in this document and any duties he may be given in the Curia by the Speaker of the House.
• Modding Registrar - The Registrar shall be responsible for maintaining the Modding Registry, answering questions about the registry and resolving disputes between members concerning the registry in a fair and impartial manner.
• The TWC Wiki Editor - Is in charge of overseeing the Wiki Project.

Further Permanent Officers may be created by amendment. Any member of Citizen rank may apply unless otherwise stated.

Non Permanent Officers

Non Permanent Curia Officers may be created to oversee specific short term Curia Projects. They may be created by a Curia Decision and cease to exist upon the completion of the project.

Section 4 - The Judiciary

Article 1 - Citizens Behavior

The suspension and removal of a Rank is handled by the Consilium de Civitate via the following disciplinary process. No Citizen may be subject to more than one process for a single post.

Procedure

If any Citizen receives a staff warning from an Officer of the Moderation Branch their case will be referred to the Consilium de Civitate by the Chief of Branch or the Speaker of the House, who will open a thread and post all relevant user notes of the accused. The accused will then be asked by the Speaker of the House to produce a defence within forty eight hours. At the conclusion of this period, regardless of whether a defence has been received, a vote shall be opened to conclude after four days. The options are

• Dismiss the Case
• Take Further Action
• Abstain

If the CdeC vote to take further action, a second poll is opened for four days. The options are:

• Censure
• Suspension of rank for 1 week
• Suspension of rank for 1 month
• Suspension of rank for 2 months
• Permanent Removal of Rank
• Abstain

A simple majority of non abstaining members is required for the vote to pass.

If a member is referred by another member, the process is the same, except that the accusation is substituted for usernotes in the thread, and the defendant shall receive an anonymous copy of the accusation from the Speaker of the House.

A Rank may not be removed except by the procedure outlined in this Article. Divus, Opifex and Phalera awards may only be removed by a Decision of the Curia or by the request of the rank holder.

Article 2 - Tribunal

To defend the rights of Members, and to ensure fair and just punishment towards those who violate the laws of TWC, a Tribunal shall be established

The purpose of the Tribunal is to provide those members of TWC who have been punished in the past by the Moderation Branch a place to request the reversal of their punishment. This is in no way a guarantee that the punishment will be removed, but every case presented will be reviewed by a panel of three judges.

Members may create a thread in the Tribunal Forum, The Judges will study the case details, and may request any additional information on the member from the Senior Moderators. The Judges will then post the majority decision. The Judges are not tasked to decide the appropriateness or validity of a Forum Rule of Term of Service, and may only rule on whether the Term was correctly enforced and the punishment suitable for the offence.

Article 3 - Judges

To serve on the Tribunal, a panel of three Judges is chosen by Hex. The judges can include any member from Hex, save the CoM, as he is is part of the appeals process. The candidates are not limited to Hex members and can include members with a Moderator's Mace

Section 5 - Additional Provisions

Article 1 -Symposium

All Citizens of TWC have access to the Symposium forum. This forum exists as a general meeting place for both old and new Citizens of the Total War Centre Forums. Within the Symposium, rules are generally more relaxed so as to allow for more concentrated debates to take place. Breach of the Terms of Service shall still be dealt with accordingly in this forum.

Article 2 - Community Medals

A “Medal” can be awarded to any member who has in some way contributed and achieved something which was of benefit to the wider community. Medals are controlled and run by the Curia. The qualifications and procedure by which each medal is awarded to a user can vary according to the wishes of the Curia. In order for a medal to be created it must acquire the majority in accordance with the Legislation section of the Constitution. Every Curia approved medal is to be listed in the appropriate section below along with its Qualifications.

Large Size

Divus

To achieve apotheosis and Curia vote, the nominee must be supported by three fourths of non abstaining elected members of the Consilium de Civitate. The nominee must have served as a Council Officer (or previous equivalents), made a clear and distinguished contribution to the community and provided exceptional service to TWC in their capacity as an administrator. They cannot be nominated within three months of resigning their Officer Position.

Any Citizen can nominate a former Council Officer and does so by PMing a Consilium de Civitate member. The Consilium de Civitate will contact the nominee and ask if he or she will accept the nomination. If the nominee should decline, or fails to respond within one month, no further action need be taken and the nomination declared null and void.

If the nominee should accept, the Consilium de Civitate will create a thread within the Consilium de Civitate Forum to investigate the legitimacy of the nominee’s accolades. The Consilium de Civitate has the right to request any and all relevant material from the Staff Officers to ascertain this, with the approval of the Council. The Consilium de Civitate will discuss the nominee and his qualifications for at least a week before the vote is held.

Should the nominee receive the support of three fourths of non abstaining Consilium de Civitate members, the Curator shall create a discussion in the Prothalamos lasting at least three days and then move the nomination to vote as per the procedure in Section 2 Article 3. The vote shall last one week and the nominee shall require a two-third majority of non-abstaining votes to become Divus. A nominee who fails the vote is not eligible to be nominated again for a six month period.

Opifex

To qualify for an Opifex award, the nominee must have made exceptional input to TW sections of the boards, either by modding or other contributions related to TW section. A member of any Rank is eligible to receive an Opifex award, but must also meet the criteria to become a Citizen. His nomination must also be seconded by an elected member of the Consilium de Civitate.

Qualifying nominees shall have their nomination posted in the Prothalamos and will be moved to vote as per the procedure in Section 2 Article 3. Once moved to they shall be voted upon for a period of one week and require a two-third majority of non-abstaining votes to achieve the award. If the nominee was not already a Citizen, this Rank shall also be conferred upon them if they pass. A nominee who fails to pass his vote is not eligible to re-nominated until three months have passed.

Phalera

To qualify for a Phalera's award, the nominee must have made exceptional input or otherwise made significant contributions inside the CC sections of the boards. A member of any Rank is eligible to receive an Phalera award, but must also meet the criteria to become a Citizen. His nomination must also be seconded by an elected member of the Consilium de Civitate.

Qualifying nominees shall have their nomination posted in the Prothalamos and will be moved to vote as per the procedure in Section 2 Article 3. Once moved to they shall be voted upon for a period of one week and require a two-third majority of non-abstaining votes to achieve the award. If the nominee was not already a Citizen, this Rank shall also be conferred upon them if they pass. A nominee who fails to pass his vote is not eligible to re-nominated until three months have passed.

Medium Size

Moderators Mace

The award is divided into three classes. The Bronze Mace is awarded to any member who has served as an official Staff Moderator for over three months. The Silver Mace is awarded to any moderator who has been promoted to “Senior Moderator”and served for 3 months or Served as “Staff Moderator” for 6 months. The “Golden Moderators Mace” is awarded to any Moderator who is deemed to have provided the site with exceptional service for over 1 Year in areas of Moderation and Moderation Policy, Senior Moderator who is deemed to have provided the site with exceptional service for over 6 months in areas of Moderation and Moderation Policy and any Chief of Moderation who has served for 3 months. All the Mace awards are awarded by the Administrative Council.

Scribes Quill

The award is divided into three classes. The Bronze Quill is awarded to any Scriptorium Librarian who has served as an official “Content Staff Member” at least three months or any other member who and has produced material for over four publications. The Silver Quill is awarded to any “Content Staff Member” who has been promoted to “Content Editor” and served for 3 months any Scriptorium Librarian who has served as “Content Staff Member” for over 6 months or any other "Content Staff Member" who has produced material over 12 publications. The “Golden Quill” is awarded to any “Head of Content” who is deemed to have provided the site with exceptional service for over 6 months in areas of Content, any Editor who is deemed to have performed exceptional service to the Content Branch for over 6 months or any Content Staff Officer who has served over 1 year in their position, while meeting the criteria for the silver medal.. The Gold award is awarded by the “Administrative Council” whereas the Silver and Bronze are awarded by the “Head of Content”

Technicians Screwdriver

Gold Silver and Bronze screwdrivers awarded for over a years, 6-12 months, and 3-6 months service respectively as a Staff Technician

Small Size

Member and Modder Awards

This category of medals is awarded to every member who wins an award in the TWC Site Awards. The medal will have a year number on it to show when it was awarded. The Medal should also link to the relevant Awards thread. The precise medal is awarded based on the precise nature of the Award won. The specific medals will be created by those in charge of the awards at the time and implemented by the Technical staff.